TV in 2022 was run by liars. traitor. con man. Mole. But none of it was hosted by the incomparable Alan Cumming.
Peacock follows the popular BBC train. traitorThe “Murder Mystery” reality competition TV series that instantly makes you think, “Oh, yeah.” mafiaThe setup is simple: 20 competitors gather in a castle to complete elaborate missions to add to a prize pot split by a few winners at the end of the game. Decide which player to “kill”. mafia Also Werewolf — and they are out of the game. Traitors must then trick fellow players into voting or “banning” players suspected of cheating, whether guilty or not.
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Like Peacock and BBC traitor beautifully set up knife out– Castles in the Scottish Highlands filled with massive chandeliers, unsettling taxidermy, deep chesterfields and yes, hidden dungeon rooms. The set of the series is the same up to the huge round cult “exile” table. While the UK version featured ordinary citizens, the US has a mix of reality TV celebrities and civilians. And instead of the BBC’s Claudia Winkleman running the show, Peacock’s host is none other than the brilliant and theatrical Alan Cumming.
felt. . tension.
Credit: NBC Universal
From his first appearance as host of traitor, Cumming is all in. Rumbling promises of “murder” (not real murder, it’s a video game) and deceiving as cunningly as his one-man Macbeth In his Broadway show, Cumming literally quotes Scottish plays while explaining the rules of the game. The series features Cumming slowly and dramatically descending various grand staircases of wood and stone while providing commentary adorned with boldly colored berets, crisply tailored tartans, and glittering cape pins. doing. Gazing into the foreboding darkened sky, Cumming ruminates on the proceedings, combining all his knowledge of Shakespearean antiheroes serving piping hot tea. “As Robert the Bruce used to say, ‘If it doesn’t work the first time, try to find out who’s trash-talking you in the billiard room.'” Mission, Cumming said, “Fergus! Grab it!” If you’ve been using ringtones since 2001, this phrase was on every incoming message.
traitor Audiences are familiar with the impostor’s identity from the words, so it needs a consistently atmospheric and effervescent host like Cumming. MoleBeyond missions, the series spends a lot of time just watching competitors eat pastries and exchange suspicions. Those who didn’t reveal that they had breakfast one by one as Cumming strode to snatch the portrait of a fallen competitor…tossing the wall mercilessly. “It’s me again! Your bed and breakfast host from Hell,” he sings in episode one.
Serious “Wickerman” vibes.
Credit: NBC Universal
During missions, Cumming’s disdain for incompetence is eye-opening, barking orders at the player from behind a golden pocket watch and setting fire to a wooden beast beside a vast Scottish loch. And during each night’s banishment, Cumming commands the room and delivers a fatal blow with all the finesse of a Game of Thrones villain. , you were exiled,” and I would die on the spot. Death.
traitor A reality show that’s fun enough to watch, but without a big reveal at the end it steers into repetitive finger-pointing territory that’s more interesting to players than audiences. We have chosen a killer host at Cumming, who is the bed and breakfast host of . Hosts rarely cheat on players, but in this case it’s the perfect crime.
